The Raiders used significant salary-cap space after agreeing to trade for receiver Antonio Brown and give him a big, fat raise Saturday.
They got some flexibility back a few hours later Sunday, when they agreed to trade two-time Pro Bowl guard Kelechi Osemele and a sixth-round draft pick to the New York Jets for a fifth-round pick in 2019, a league source confirmed to NBC Sports Bay Area.
The deal won’t become official until the new league year starts Wednesday.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
ESPN was first to report the Osemele deal, and Bay Area News Group was first to report terms of the trade.
The move frees $10.2 million in cap space without dead money attached and takes $11.7 million off the books in 2020. None of that money is guaranteed.
The Raiders could have cut Osemele if they didn’t find a trade partner, so getting a return should be considered a win, even if it isn’t much for a former All-Pro.
Osemele was dominant in 2016 and at times in 2017, but he had a down 2018 impacted by injuries. The road-paving left guard became too expensive working under a big-money contract negotiated by former GM Reggie McKenzie, and therefore was expendable despite his talents.
NFL
The Raiders will need help at guard, either in the starting lineup or for depth. High-priced right guard Gabe Jackson easily could move to the left -- he played there during his entire athletic career before Osemele came aboard -- and Denzelle Good could play right guard. Last year’s backup interior lineman, Jon Feliciano, is well respected throughout the NFL and will hit unrestricted free agency without a new deal from the Raiders.
The Raiders' plans at guard are uncertain at this time, though it must be addressed in some way this offseason.
The Raiders' cap space can’t be identified at this stage, without full details of Brown’s contract restructuring worth roughly $50 million.
[RELATED: AB posts interview of Gruden complimenting him]
Adding $10.2 million to this year’s total makes up for some decreases from the Brown deal and gives the Raiders more flexibility heading toward free agency. Teams can start negotiating with agents for free agents on Monday and can sign them on Wednesday afternoon when the new league year begins.
Osemele was an important member of a once-dominant Raiders offensive line that fell on hard times last season. The Iowa State alum missed five games with injury last year, his first after dropping significant weight before the 2018 offseason.